UNICO 26 inch Arcade Monitor, 4:3 Ratio LCD Gaming Monitor for HDMI/VGA/CGA/EGA Arcade Machine

I am very happy there is finally a 4:3 aspect ratio flat screen monitor option for arcade machines in the 25inch or bigger category. This is easily the best option for actual arcade machines to replace CRT monitors with flat screens, for those who do not want to deal with arcade CRT monitors. At least until Unico releases their Pro model next year. Scaling may not be Retrotink5x/OSSC quality, but it is DEFINTIELY better than using a GBS-8200 on a standard PC monitor. Color is good, brightness and contrast is good. Viewing angles are decently good for an LCD, especially for an arcade cabinet where spectators like to watch from different angles. Definitely watch some youtube reviews on this before buying so you know what you are getting, cause there are issues. But despite the criticisms, there are work arounds for them (which Unico says they are fixing). I HIGHLY recommend you pick up one of those $13 CGA to VGA adapters off ebay. That way instead of plugging an arcade JAMMA board's RGBS signal directly into the monitor's RGBS input, you are plugging the signal into the monitor's VGA input. This monitor's VGA input will still read the RGBS 15khz signal, but through the VGA input will properly detect the signal's voltage correctly, and you wont have the contrast issues like many boards are having. This is how I get the monitor to look as good as it is on my Neo Geo. With Mortal Kombat games, the scaling does cut off some of the top and bottom of the screen, and it is not adjustable. But it is not a dealbreaker by any means. Gameplay area still good. Monitor powers up on its own when power is applied with no issues. None of that company logo pop up crap when turning on, which is my biggest beef when going the PC monitor/GBS8200 route (my Street Fighter 2 and MK1 currently dealing with this until I fix my spare CRTs or buy two more of these monitors). I do wish there was some mounting kit options for replacing standard 25 inch wells gardner monitors in Midway cabinets or things like that. But its not a heavy monitor by any means, and easy to buy some wood or metal and screws and rig something up, which is what I ended up doing for my Neo Geo. At a glance and even up close, looks like a factory install. Native resolution is 1204x768 fyi for those who plan on using this on a MAME device, or even as just a standard PC monitor. Unico talked on the 19kfox podcast that not only with the updated pro model that is coming out next year with the better resolution, that they are also going to sell upgraded circuit boards for this monitor here. So I am looking forward to that as well. I still plan on putting a CRT back in my Neo Geo as I prefer that in arcade machines (I'm a CRT purist for arcade hardware), but this Unico is growing on my and the best alternative, and I definitely will keep one of these around as a back up regardless. If I ever get tired of dealing with CRTs, and can't wait a year for the pro model, I'd definitely use these instead.

I am writing a review based on quality and functionality. I want to start off by saying how impressed I was with the fitment with replacing my 27” CRT that came in my Tokyo Drift arcade machines. These monitors will need some fabrication in order to fit properly*. Over all I am quite impressed with the picture quality after spending some time adjusting the settings to mimic the effect of the CRT. These met my expectations for replacing my monitors. Well worth the money if you want to keep the original aspect ratio of the CRT.

Very nice fit and look. I built my own arcade cabinet by largely following MK1 including the spot for a 25” arcade crt monitor. After various issues and years later i just had a tv. This fit perfectly as possible in the frame i constructed. Works great with hdmi. Vga gave some issues of centering, scaling, etc. The monitor has controls to help some, but the hdmi was less hassle. Only drawback is the length of the cable for the adjustment controls. An extra foot or so longer would allow me to position them better. I will search for compatible cable instead of soldering to extend. With HDMI, this is not an issue. Now i could build much shallower.

It’s expensive for what it is, but if your arcade crt crapped out, there are not many options out there. Occasionally while playing, the monitor goes black and tries to switch inputs but then come back. The colors are also hard to dial in. I used it to replace the dead crt on my Outrun 2 SP.

I have bought 4 of these now to replace failing crts in various machines and they work great each time right out of the box. my only gripe is I wish they had better mounting options. a vesa mounting option would send these over the edge for sure and save me so much time. These monitors have amazing viewing angles and produce amazing blacks no washout at all

I am very disappointed with Unico, and with the performance of this 26" monitor. When I first purchased this monitor I was having trouble getting a stable image with any consistency, so I reached out to Unico USA support on 21 Feb 2024. Unico told me they were aware of the issue, and were developing an updated controller board which addressed the problem. Unico told me they would send me the new controller as soon as they were available. The next time I reached out to them they told me the updated boards were out of stock! For almost two years I have gone back and forth with them over email with them always telling me I just needed to wait a few more months and the updated board would be available. Now they are saying the Amazon team will get back to me soon, that was on Jan 18th, 2026. If you are planning to use this monitor to replace a 25" CRT in a classic arcade game, don't be surprised if you can't get a stable picture. Stick with the CRT.

So this is a monitor I want to love. As an arcade enthusiast, finally having a 26” 4:3 option in a display should be awesome. And for the specific use of running old 4:3 content that was low res to start with, this thing does the job. But it does it kind of ugly. The panel is a mediocre 1024x768 (maybe). I was able to set it to 1280x960 in windows using an HDMI to VGA adapter, but since this panel was announced, it has been pretty confusing to try and glean what the panel’s REAL native resolution really is. Which leads into point two, I am using the VGA input instead of the HDMI input because the panel has a weird controller that over the HDMI has issues with squishing the image. Online people seem to think the display has a controller board from a 768p television which makes the controller think it’s wide screen even tho it is not. But on the VGA input I had no issues getting a real 4:3 resolution that filled the screen and didn’t look distorted. Obviously, 1024x768 or even 1280x960 look terrible in windows desktop on a 26 inch panel. It works. You can use it if you need to… but you’re not gonna want to daily drive this display for your PC. However, you wouldn’t buy this for a normal desktop, so maybe that doesn’t matter. If you are running older 4:3 content, it looks great for that. The rub is that this is pretty pricey as monitors go. And the monitor is mediocre at best. But it is literally the only larger 4:3 display out there. So when it came to fitting the largest possible display for old arcade games into a cab built for 27” 16:9 displays, this was pretty much the only option, warts and all. And to be fair, for that specific use case, which is the intended audience for this panel, the warts don’t get in the way so much.

Works beautifully and has a great picture. Aspect ratio auto adjusts just fine. But if not then it has setting to adjust to your needs on the back of the screen.

It's NOT a 4:3 ratio like everyone says it is, it amazes me how many though think it is. The monitor is good once it's tweaked...the resolution and clarity for use as a windows display will suck badly but if using it for emulation, arcade replacement you'll be happy...5:4...once you figure it out, like I said, you'll be happy.

Ideal pour remplacer lecran cathodique d'une arcade de 26 a 28" Le resultat et la qualite d'image est parfaite

First off...it's about time someone came out with a larger replacement monitor with a 4:3 ratio. Over all it's not bad. There's a little ghosting when items on the screen move quickly. The video can get washed out from viewing it off to the side. Options for adjusting the screen are very limited. Unfortunately I can't fix the screen from being cut off from the top and/or bottom. And you need to tweek the video settings. It won't be perfect out of the box. Just a few things that could be improved on. But I'm happy with it. It's a perfect size to replace any 25 or 27" monitor. This is an update.. I had ordered a 2nd panel. It ended up coming without a power adapter. Which was a bit of a let down.